Maybe I Shouldn't Drink Purple Stuff
by Siriusly in Lurve
Summary: Written for lilkyonkyon's HP 'Don't Drink and Apparate Challenge'. Lily is inebriated and tries to apparate home. This is not the easiest feat, as James Potter soon finds out.


**Written for lilkyonkyon's HP 'Don't Drink and Apparate Challenge'**

**Challenge: The challenge is simple. Your task is to write a fic in which a character (or many characters) from Harry Potter drink and try to Apparate. What happens to them when they try is up to you!**

**A/N: This has been sitting in my computer, waiting to be finished. First challenge fic, don't judge me too harshly.**

**Disclaimer: Roses be red, violets be blue, I sadly don't own the HP crew! **

In the bar sat four reckless --at least three of them were-- teenagers. Alice Young, Mary MacDonald, Marlene McKinnon and Lily Evans. They were all out for a celebratory night, because Alice had received news she was accepted into Auror training, at eighteen no less. Alice was trying to convince the others to drink an unknown substance of a mysterious violet shade, but they were all cautious, even Marlene, the wildest of the group.

"Relax," slurred Alice, taking a sip of the purple liquid. "If I'm brave enough to do it, why aren't you lot? And you call yourselves Gryffindors," she added in a scoffing tone. It would have made a better impression had she not hiccoughed in the middle of the sentence, but the point got across all the same.

If you knew the other three girls, you'd be aware that accusing someone of not being a Gryffindor is hitting below the belt. They were tough and independent people, members of the Order of the Phoenix, an organization to fight against the Dark Lord of their time, Voldemort. So obviously they were brave. But name of defending the honor of their house, they all hesitantly took a drink.

Mary was a little tipsy thereafter, but it wasn't as if she hadn't been before. Marlene was almost completely fine, considering she could hold her alcohol quite well. But Lily was a different story.

For some unknown reason, Lily had always had a low tolerance for alcohol. When she had turned seventeen in sixth year and they all went out to celebrate, on a night much like their current one, Lily had had her first _major _encounter with firewhiskey. She'd had some at parties, and wine --which she thought was god damn awful-- in a small amount on New Year's Eve at home, but never a large intake at once. Lily had a glass and half on that night in sixth year before she was puking in the ladies' room soon after. So, on this night, when she had her drink, she was... as her not-so-sober self would put it... drunk as a bug. (She had never been able to make sense of why she said that, did bugs even _get _drunk? Not likely, how would they get alcohol in their systems?)

Alice, who was already not-so-sober, watched on with an amused smile as Lily began to sing to herself-- quite loudly, in fact. "_I'm Lily, I don't have a willy, that would be silly, coz my name ain't Billy..._" sang Lily happily, swaying back and forth.

Since Marlene was the most sober of the bunch, she was the most concerned, especially when her friend poured herself another glass. "Uh, Lils, maybe you've had enough for tonight. You know what alcohol does to you," she said, peering at the redhead with cautious eyes.

"Nuh-uh, I gots to have a 'lil bit more," responded the teenager, grinning as she pulled the glass to her lips once more. "Mm, tastes like... tastes like butterflies," Lily said in a dazed voice. She began to sing her song again, even louder this time. "_I'M LILY, I DON'T HAVE A WILLY, THAT WOULD SILLY, COZ MY NAME AIN'T BILLLLLLYYY!_" she stretched the last word out in a high note and did jazz hands.

"That's it, Evans, you're going home before you do something you'll regret," said Marlene, grabbing Lily's arm.

Lily frowned. "But... I like it here. C'mon, just give me five more minutes?" she asked in a whiny voice like a small child. She was surprising her friends, and herself, frankly, by not vomiting at this point.

Feeling like she was playing mother, the blond-haired girl shook her head. "You are going to leave now, otherwise you'll end up doing something stupid. Like hooking up with that guy," Marlene said, pointing at a boy across the room who was dancing on a bar-stool while singing a song in french.

Lily shrugged, staring at the guy. She didn't see anything wrong with that. The person was a good dancer, he could sing, and was multi-li-- multi-ligin-- could speak other languages. "I think he's kind of cute," she said, twirling a strand of her hair. Marlene clutched her arm quite roughly then, dragging her out of the bar and pulling her outside. It was cold out, so Lily shivered.

"Alright Lils, now I'm going to side-along apparate with you, alright?" Marlene told her drunken friend.

The redhead shook her head. "No. I'm _fine_. Go, have a good time with Mary and Al. I'll be okay," Lily insisted, mustering up proper words with all her brain power at the time. She didn't want to be the reason her friends didn't get to have a good time. If Marlene was going to be all sour about her drinking, then she would just go home like a good little girl.

Marlene looked uncertain. "Are you _absolutely _sure?" she asked with a furrowed brow.

"_Yes. _I'm good. I'm not gonna ruin Alice's big night just coz I had little much o' the purple stuff," Lily said. It was a wonder that she managed to get that sentence out straight, but luckily she did. It seemed to convince Marlene well enough, as the girl murmured to Lily, "Apparate _straight _home, Evans. I mean it. If you turn up, dead, I'll kill you."

Lily nodded, not so much paying attention as trying to figure out how one would kill someone who was already dead. After giving up on that problem, Lily took her wand out of her jean pocket --Mad-Eye Moody always told her that she take off a buttock doing that, but she ignored the advice-- and tried to get her fuzzy brain to operate. Strangely, she couldn't really remember the area where she lived, so she just thought _home. _She hoped that would be enough to get her there.

She spun around on the spot, and with a _pop _she was in a house. It was dark, and she couldn't find the light switch, but she hoped it was her own home. It had to be, didn't it? She had thought of home, so why wouldn't it be? Lily felt her way around in the dark, and soon found the arm of what felt like a couch. So she plopped down on it without giving it a second thought.

What she landed on however, did not feel like a couch. It was equally comfortable, if not more, but definitely not couch-like. For instance, couches do not say, "Ow!" as this one did. Nor did they have pretty eyes that one could see the outline of in the darkness. Couches especially did not stare at her for a moment before muttering in a groggy voice, "Lily?"

Lily was happy that it was a voice she recognized, but uncertain as to why the person was in her house. "WhatyoudoinghereJames?" she said, her words melding together. James didn't seem to understand, as there was no reply. She tried again. "What are ya doing here, James?" her voice came out much louder than she intended. It would have been kinder to James' ears if she had spoken softly, considering she was right, well, on him.

"Uh, Lils? This is my house. Also, it's my couch, and erm, my _body _that you're on top of." explained James.

"Oops," Lily muttered with a giggle. "Meant to go home. Ah well," she said, snuggling into her friend. She was too intoxicated to care how awkward this would be the next day.

If Lily could see in the dark, what she would have saw was none other than the rare sight of James Potter blushing. "Can you... get off, love? I mean, I can tell you've had a little bit much to drink, so I'm fine if you crash here. But I think you'd be more comfortable on the couch, or I could take the couch and you could take my bed. It's no problem at all."

She shook her head, though he couldn't see her in the darkness. "You're much more comfortable than either of those things." she protested, unwilling to move.

James sighed, probably knowing that she would be stubborn enough with this that she would get her way in the end. "Fine, but when you scream tomorrow, thinking you've slept with me or something, then try do it quietly. I like to sleep in on Sundays," he rolled his eyes, and let her cuddle with him, blushing the entire time. He didn't think he'd ever been happier that Lily had poor night-vision.

He was drifting off into sleep when he heard a giggle. Lily was looking at him still. He could tell because though neither could see much, the whites of her eyes were quite bright, and seemed to be inches away from his face. "Hey James," she said, so close to him she almost went cross-eyed, "you look pretty in the dark." she stated, giggling again.

Lily heard him chuckle. "You really are drunk, aren't you?" he asked. She could hear the amusement in his voice.

"I dunno, what does this tell you?" she asked, and then kissed him, surprising them both. He waited a minute before reacting, and kissing her back. Lily wasn't sure why she had just done that. She just thought of how handsome he was, and how nice he was being to her, and felt the urge to. She liked it, though. Though he was her friend, and she knew he had liked her for years when they were younger --but she was sure he'd got over it by then-- Lily had never actually kissed James. She thought his kiss was even better than the purple stuff, which was her favourite new drink in the world.

After a minute, he pulled back. "No, we can't be doing this. You don't know what you're doing, you don't want this. I'm not going to take advantage of you like this," he said, moving his head out of her reach, for her hands were entwining themselves in his hair. Lily would realize later that this action took a lot of restraint on James' part. He was a hormone-driven teenage boy, and though she didn't realize it, he had strong feelings for her.

"But I _do _want to do this. You're not taking advantage of me!" she peered at him curiously, trying to see him better in the dark. "Do _you _want to do this?" she asked, frowning. Did he think she was a bad-kisser or something? How rude!

James reached over behind him and found the light switch. "That's better," he muttered. "Lily, it's not that I don't want to do this, believe me --Merlin I hope you don't remember this in the morning-- for an entire seven years, I've dreamt of nothing _but _this. But I know this isn't right. You don't want to do this, trust me. I know you, the _sober _you, and you don't like me this way, and I've accepted that. Please don't make our lives anymore complicated, huh?"

"So you're just being nice? You _don't _think I'm a bad-kisser?" she asked suspiciously, through narrowed eyes. If it weren't for her state, and the situation, James would've laughed at her serious demeanor.

"No Lily, you are most definitely _not _a bad kisser." he said, chuckling. "Just go to sleep. But if you want me to move, my offer still stands," James said, trying to make the situation so it would be less awkward in the morning. The majority of him knew that no matter what he said, drunk or not, Lily was the most stubborn bloody woman he had ever met. That was something he loved about her.

"Nah, just turn of the light," Lily said, snuggling back into to him.

James sighed heavily, cheeks flaming up again, but nodded. He reached behind him and turned off the light, and in the darkness he marveled at what an odd night this was. He had just watched a T.V. Movie, nothing particularly interesting, while eating a sandwich. He was falling asleep towards the end, so he had shut off the T.V. But then Lily had just appeared, drunk as hell, snuggling, touching and _kissing him_. James wanted more than anything for her to mean that, but he knew it was all because she didn't know what she was doing. _If only.... _he thought, drifting off.

* * *

Lily woke up in the morning, touching her pillow. But it didn't feel like her pillow. It wasn't soft and and fluffy as usual, but warm and firm. She didn't understand. She lifted her head gingerly --though the pain shot through it anyways-- to try and figure out what she was really resting her head on. Or in this case it appeared, _who_. Lily came to the conclusion it was a person because, for one, she saw a torso and legs beneath her. For two, the chest of whomever it was, was rising and falling. And lastly, as she pulled her gaze upward, she saw the face of her friend, James Potter.

_What the-- _She tried to trace her memories back. The previous night, Alice and the girls, purple substances, couches, and... _kissing _James all flashed in at once. She blushed at her behaviour, thinking of what she had said. How embarrassing. What had he thought of her? She was very glad he was still asleep. _Oh Merlin, this is going to be awkward. _Lily sighed, which roused James from his slumber.

"Lily?" he asked, his eyes still half-squinted. He smiled a little. "I thought you'd have screamed by now," he muttered with a snicker.

"Almost did," she responded, grinning sheepishly.

James was happy that she wasn't freaking out. He had expected something a lot worse than _almost _screaming. Like her yelling, _'What the bleeding hell is wrong with you, you sick, twisted maniac who tries to molest women when they aren't thinking straight? _Of course, he _hadn't _tried anything on Lily, but he still felt guilty for kissing her back. She was in a right state and it was ungentlemanly do so. "So... how much do you remember from last night?" asked James nervously.

"It's slowly coming back," she told him, sitting up and moving off of him. He sat up as well. Memories were coming back to her, and as she spoke, words James had murmured last night floated to the forefront of her mind. _For an entire seven years I've dreamt of nothing _but _this..... you don't like me this, way and I've accepted that. _The connection wasn't the hardest to make, and when she put the pieces together her flush came back with a vengeance. James still liked her, and she was sure of that. What she wasn't sure of, was how she felt about it.

James noticed the realization in her eyes, and his eyes widened, slightly panicked. "What did you remember?" he inquired, running a hand through his hair nervously.

Lily blushed even harder, not sure how to respond. _He, me, that kiss, he was so bloody sweet to me then-- Ugh! What to think?! _Phrases and words that didn't make sense flew around in her brain. She had _felt _something last night, and she was sure it wasn't because of anything she drank. But that didn't mean that she liked him, did it? She put off responding, staring off, trying to decide how she would act. She felt a huge migraine coming on, though it could have been a hangover-- she still didn't know what the purple stuff was.

Her infuriating mouth answered for her in a minute, blurting out, "You like me!"

James turned as red as she was, but made no move to deny or support this claim. Which was enough to say that he had meant what he said the night before. And that he _still _meant it. There was a tense and pregnant silence.

Lily sat, stewing in her torrent of thoughts. James liked her, and now he knew that she knew. Was he going to ask her out again, like he had at school? Would he go with denial, say it wasn't true and he had just told her that so she wouldn't get upset? Or would he pretend that this didn't happen, and ignore it like they could just go back to before? Lily thought if he did the former, she might actually consider a yes.

James' mind-track was along the lines of Lily's. He too, was wondering what he would say or do. He wanted desperately to take it back, because he didn't want to ruin the friendship they had now. He had accepted that he could never stop his feelings for her, and had also accepted that she would never want him. But what did her blush mean? Was it one of embarrassment? Shyness? Of... feelings?! He also could not stifle the urge to ask her if she'd go out with him, just hoping that this would be the one time where it worked.

Finally, James settled for a quiet, "Kind of," while he stared at his lap. He liked her a lot more than 'kind of', loved her, actually, but he didn't want to reveal anything until he knew her feelings. He slowly turned his head to stare at her when she remained silent. "Do you... like me?" he asked, half-ready to kill himself for sounding so stupid. He wasn't sure if he wanted to know her answer.

Meeting James' hazel, gold-flecked eyes, Lily came to a conclusion on her feelings. A slow smile spread across her face as she said, with conviction, "I dunno, what does this tell you?" for the second time, she leaned in and kissed him, and this time she was in a conscious state of mind, and able to enjoy it. The spark that had been there last night was even stronger, and it lit a fire in their hearts. She pushed forward, knocking him on his back, not that he minded in the least. As they were snogging and rolling around on the couch Lily wondered why she had never seen him this way before.

They pulled back before they got too carried away. "Are you sure you're not still a little drunk?" asked James, breathing heavily.

"Doubtful, but if so, let's enjoy it while we can," teased Lily, grinning. But her voice was also breathless, so the effect was lost somewhat. The kiss had been amazing, better than that, even. And this time she was sober and able to take it all in and appreciate it. Her hands had caressed his hair, which was much softer than it looked. His eyes, as well as hers, had been open the entire time, to revel in the moment. Though for some that might have been awkward, it made them enjoy the kiss more. His eyes had widened, making him look surprised. But deeper in, you could see the passion and mischief which danced there permanently, hidden slightly in the darkened state of his irises. She leaned forward to kiss me once more, but paused. "Oh, and James? Will you go out with me?"

With a nod to her words, and a slight grin, James moved to close the distance between them. As he kissed her, he thought of how a simple drunk apparation had caused the miracle of his life: Lily Evans liking him back. He had never been so thankful for alcohol.


End file.
